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Spread out through the room are a motley collection of people, most of them dressed casually.
Well, casually or not very dressed at all.
Several men and women are topless, conversing and drinking. Others are in loungewear, robes, or just underwear, all of it looking as though they planned the outfit for the evening.
It’s odd, and definitely not what I would have expected from Ora.
“What?” She laughs, catching the look on my face. “Bar fighting and carousing is for bars. They have their time and place, but I have other tastes, too. I even do normal shit like watch movies on the couch sometimes, go figure! Come on, I’ll grab us some drinks.”
I have no idea how to respond as she leads me through the mix.
The party is everything mine never were. It’s relaxing. Chill.
And despite the fact that the apartment is extremely luxurious and it’s in a part of town I’ll never be able to afford to live in, it doesn’t feel hoity-toity like the houses up on the hill, and those of the kids I planned parties for.
Every person at this party is engaged, intensely so, but not losing control and going insane. Maybe it’s just early?
They are all clearly having a great time, without the desperation of college kids trying to get wasted and grope someone. The effect is instantaneous on my mood, loosening me up and untying some of the knots I’ve had in my stomach for days now.
When I do relax, I notice more details, things that would normally unnerve me but in this setting I find intriguing, charming.
Every body type is present here, all beautiful in their own way. No one is ashamed or uncomfortable. I almost giggle as a woman with hips even wider than mine winks at me and pinches Ora’s ass as we pass by.
Eyes follow us, but it’s not leering or judgmental.
To our left a slender, wiry young couple dance slowly to the trance music saturating the main living area, completely unaware of anything else around them. That’s when I start to notice more signs of the various intoxicants flavoring the party.
Yet not a single person is losing their shit.
Not that I don’t condone going nuts every once in a while, but there’s so much more of an appeal in this method of indulgence. For someone like me, who has some serious control issues, if I’m honest, the idea of being able to let loose safely sounds like a straight up fantasy.
“Help yourself to anything you want, food or drink. There are a couple of extra bedrooms down the hall for later, if you need to crash here. Just don’t be surprised if there are occupants in some, and lock the door if you don’t want company, ‘K?” Before I can answer, Ora passes me a glass and she’s off, mingling, giving hugs, and chatting.
A few sips of wine have my nerves almost completely gone, and one of the plush, black couches along the far wall calls out to me to find a place to relax and watch the show.
Maybe once I get my bearings, I’ll even mingle a little myself.
I’m still struggling to reconcile the Ora I met in jail versus the woman I see giggling with a nearly naked couple by the floor to ceiling windows that lead out to the patio. If anything, it makes me like her more, the fact that there’s more to her than I initially thought.
It also makes me realize that I don’t know very much about her. So very little.
In the heady buzz growing in my head, it occurs to me that I want to.
That I need a friend like her.
That I need to make changes and trust someone. Tell. Gavin. Ora.
Panic always makes me shut down. Maybe instead, I need to open up.
My little moment of revelation is interrupted suddenly by the very woman in my thoughts. Ora is in my lap, sitting like she belongs there.
“Are you having a good time, Hell?” She’s practically glowing, stripped down to a sleek, silky outfit that vaguely resembles pajamas.
“I really am, actually. It’s so laid back here.” I feel like I’m apologizing as I say it, for sitting quietly in the corner while everyone else dances, talks, or kisses.
“That’s the whole point. If you decide you want to say… Hi to anyone, let me know.” The way she says it makes it clear what ‘Hi’ means in this case.
“I most certainly will. But I was thinking more about… dancing. I need to move.”
